The varsity girls volleyball team defeated their rival Niles North Vikings on Thursday, Oct. 31 in two straight sets, with final scores of 25-19 and 25-23.

In doing so, they were crowned regional champions for the second straight season.

Both sides fought a battle, trying to keep the ball away from their side of the net. The game started with the Vikings in the lead scoring 3 repetitive points. After multiple kills from both sides, North called a timeout while the Wolves led the game 18-13. The game continued with the Wolves still in the lead. The Vikings were trying to fight hard to win the first battle but came short when captain senior Olivia Rusek capitalized on the set-winning hit; the Wolves won the first of a best-of-three set match.

The crowd cheered both teams on as the girls began the second set. The Vikings scored the first point, but  Rusek quickly spiked the ball to the floor to even the score 1-1. The scores began to even out every time a team was in the lead. The game went from 2-2, to  5-5, to 10-10. After a score of 12-12, the Wolves started leading the game 17-16. The Vikings gathered themselves with a timeout and came back to lead 21-18. The crowd got up on their feet. The game was close to an end. Supported by chants from Niles West students who came out to support the girls, the Wolves get back on their feet and took a 22-21 lead. The game was neck in neck as both sides were doing their best to get a victory. The crowd roared when the wolves scored 24-23. The Vikings hit the ball out of bounds. The Niles West varsity girls team were proclaimed as the winners of the night with a score of 25-23.

Captain Rusek was ecstatic to bring home another regional championship.

“I feel so incredibly happy, especially since this is the second year in a row that we’ve won regionals,” she said. “The factor that helped us win tonight was definitely team chemistry; we were like one big family and we played as a team on the court.”